17 Non-Profit Organizations to Receive over $419,000 in Grants

SAN JOSE, California -- The Sharks Foundation announced today that it will donate more than $419,000 to 17 non-profit organizations selected as the 2013 Grant Recipients. The 17 organizations will be recognized in an on-ice ceremony at the Sharks game on Feb. 9.

Sharks Foundation Board of Directors selected these 17 beneficiaries from nearly 90 grant applications that were submitted last fall. The selected organizations all met the criteria set forth by the Sharks Foundation which states that the organization must be classified as a public 501(c)3 non-profit group that offers programs that support local youth and families in Santa Clara County.

“We are pleased to be associated with and able to support these outstanding organizations. We are equally proud that we are able to make a bigger impact in our community this year by donating more money to more groups than was possible last season,” said Malcolm Bordelon, Executive Vice President of Business Operations for the San Jose Sharks and President of the Sharks Foundation Board. “The Sharks Foundation selected these 17 organizations because they align with our mission and positively affect the lives of thousands of youth and families most in need in our community.”

Since its inception in 1994, the Sharks Foundation has given more than $6 million to more than 120 non-profit organizations. This year’s grant giving total is a 35% increase from last year’s total of $310,226 to 13 organizations.

ABOUT THE SHARKS FOUNDATION

The Sharks Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the lives of youth and families in our community with an emphasis in the areas of Education, Health and Safety, and Character Development. The Sharks Foundation supplies emergency aid when appropriate, executes unique and relevant programming, supports the advancement of youth hockey and provides financial support and resources to organizations that enrich the lives of those in need.

Attached is a summary of each grant beneficiary selected by the Sharks Foundation for 2013.

GRANT RECIPIENTS FOR 2013 SEASON

Total Grants Distributed: $419,423
Total Number of Beneficiaries: 17

Organization: ACE Charter SchoolArea Served: East San JoseImpact: 475 studentsFocus Area: EducationProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund technology and equipment, which are an integral part of ACE Charter School’s math, science, and technology program. This program helps at-risk students thrive in ACE’s challenging math curriculum, which prepares all students for algebra success, and science program, which is a rich, inquiry-based program that builds both problem-solving skills and a love of the natural world. For more information, please visit www.acecharter.org.

Organization: American Heart Association Silicon ValleyArea Served: Silicon ValleyImpact: 3,750+ peopleFocus Area: Health & SafetyProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund the AHA’s Have a Heart, Save a Life program, which helps prepare underserved communities to perform CPR in the event of an emergency. Using personal, all-in-one “CPR Anytime” kits developed by the AHA, 7th graders at three San Jose schools will learn CPR then go home to train friends and family members using these kits. When more people in the community know CPR, more lives can be saved. For more information, please visit www.heart.org/siliconvalley.

Organization: Ballet San JoseArea Served: South Bay AreaImpact: 4,500 peopleFocus Area: EducationProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund arts education for underserved K-12 students in the San Jose Unified School District. The free program includes on-campus dance and music classes, lecture and demonstrations, free ballet classes at Ballet SJ School, complimentary performance tickets, supplemental teaching tools, ballet story readings, and invitations to dress rehearsals for all of Ballet SJ’s productions. For more information, please visit www.balletsj.org.

Organization: Breakthrough Silicon ValleyArea Served: San JoseImpact: 195 studentsFocus Area: EducationProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund Breakthrough Silicon Valley’s Middle School program, which will prepare students for success in the college preparatory courses that put them on track for admission to four-year universities. The program provides three six-week summer sessions, a math-based after-school program, year-round academic advising, and individual high school placement counseling. For more information, please visit www.breakthroughsv.org.

Organization: Children’s Discovery Museum of San JoseArea Served: Santa Clara CountyImpact: 300 studentsFocus Area: EducationProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund youth programs at Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose, which provide enriching after-school and summer programs for youth grades 5-12 from diverse social, economic, and ethnic backgrounds with a focus on service learning, media production and inquiry-based learning. For more information, please visit www.cdm.org.

Organization: City Year San Jose/Silicon ValleyArea Served: Santa Clara CountyImpact: 3,600 studentsFocus Area: Education Program: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund City Year’s core program, Whole School, Whole Child. With this grant, 68 City Year corps members will provide attendance mentoring programs, behavioral support and academic interventions, in-school and after-school to over 3,600 of Santa Clara County’s most underserved youth. City Year will partner with seven schools to increase student academic achievement and help them stay on track to graduate. For more information, please visit www.cityyear.org/sanjose.

Organization: George Mark Children’s HouseArea Served: Greater San Francisco Bay AreaImpact: 143 peopleFocus Area: Health & SafetyProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund transitional care for Santa Clara County children with life-limiting illness and their families. George Mark’s Transitional Care program empowers families to more proactively and effectively manage their child’s long term health, and leads to better health outcomes for both child and family; often well beyond the generally accepted prognosis. For more information, please visit www.georgemark.org.

Organization: HOPE ServicesArea Served: Santa Clara CountyImpact: 50 people Focus Area: Health & SafetyProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund the expansion of HOPE Services’ After School Program in Mountain View, which fills a void in Santa Clara County for youth with developmental disabilities and their families, providing structured, supervised after school activities with a strong emphasis on personal safety. For more information, please visit www.hopeservices.org.

Organization: Hospice of the ValleyArea Served: Santa Clara CountyImpact: 135 children & teensFocus Area: Health & SafetyProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will enable Hospice of the Valley to provide free bereavement support services to approximately 135 children and teens of hospice families for 13 months following the loss of a loved one and sliding-scale fee-based bereavement support to children in the overall community. Children who receive timely and appropriate grief support will be more resilient and better able to cope with loss and trauma later in life. For more information, please visit www.hospicevalley.org.

Organization: International Association for Human ValuesArea Served: San JoseImpact: 405 studentsFocus Area: Character DevelopmentProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund the YES! for Schools program, which has worked in San Jose’s Overfelt High School for over four years. The program teaches at-risk students how to overcome stress and anxiety, and how to live happier, healthier, and more compassionate lives. For more information, please visit www.iahv.org.

Organization: Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Area Served: Santa Clara CountyImpact: 435 peopleFocus Area: Health & SafetyProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund pharmaceutical services on the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital’s Teen Health Van. Being able to offer all prescription medications, at no cost, at the time of a medical visit, is critical to ensuring that at-risk youth are compliant with their medications. Through the Teen Health Van, LPCH strives to help at-risk youth treat and manage their medical issues, so they can be successful in all areas of life. For more information, please visit www.lpch.org.

Organization: Muscular Dystrophy Association – Greater San Francisco Bay AreaArea Served: Greater SF Bay AreaImpact: 71 local youthFocus Area: Character DevelopmentProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will help fund MDA’s Bay Area summer camp, which gives children (ages 6-17) living with muscle disease the opportunity to experience camp. Designed to meet the special needs of children with physical challenges, every activity is specially tailored to each individual’s ability so they can enjoy a barrier free week, building memories and friendships for a lifetime. For more information, please visit www.mdausa.org.

Organization: Santa Clara UniversityArea Served: San JoseImpact: 1,300 youthFocus Area: EducationProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will help SCU’s Bronco Urban Gardens (BUG) project scale its garden-based education programs in the Alma, Garner and Washington neighborhoods of San Jose. The grant will enable SCU to serve additional school and community sites, increasing the impact among at-risk K-12 students. For more information, please visit www.scu.edu.

Organization: Silicon Valley Children’s Fund Area Served: Santa Clara CountyImpact: 101 foster youthFocus Area: EducationProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will help fund SVCF’s YES program, which exists to turn around the negative life outcomes for foster youth who have aged out of the system. Former and current foster youth need much more supportive services to achieve their educational goals than the general population. By supporting the YES scholarship program, the Sharks Foundation will ensure that these students receive those much needed financial aid and services. For more information, please visit www.svcf.org.

Organization: Via ServicesArea Served: Santa Clara County Impact: 500 peopleFocus Area: Health & SafetyProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will help fund Via Services Health and Life Skills program, which is designed to maximize the positive impact on the lives of children and youth with special needs by addressing the physical, mental and emotional well-being of clients. The program empowers participants to be proactive and engaged in their own health through medical self-management, nutrition awareness, personal safety and physical activity. For more information, please visit www.viaservices.org.

Organization: YWCA Silicon ValleyArea Served: Santa Clara CountyImpact: 70 childrenFocus Area: Health & SafetyProgram: The Sharks Foundation’s grant will fund the YWCA Silicon Valley Domestic Violence Department Support Network Children’s Services Program. These funds will allow the program to provide 2,000 bed-nights for children at their emergency shelter, which includes accompanying support services. The YWCA Support Network Program provides the services necessary to help children find the physical safety and emotional support they need to establish healthy violence-free relationships and safe living environments. For more information, please visit www.ywca-sv.org.